The Senate met today in pro forma session and will not reconvene until Monday, 3 June after the Memorial Day recess. When the Senate does come back on 3 June, it will vote at 5:30 p.m. on two farm bill amendments: the Moran amendment and the Coons-Johanns amendment.Alfalfa: Would require the Risk Management Agency (RMA) to conduct a feasibility study of creating an alfalfa crop insurance policy, offered by Senator Jerry Moran (R-Kansas).Food Aid: Would increase appropriated funds limit from $40 million to $60 million for field-based food aid projects, offered by Senator Christopher Coons (D-Delaware) and Mike Johanns (R-Nebraska).The farm bill debated in the Senate in 2012 had more than 90 amendments; most of the amendments which passed i...
With considerable fanfare—and few specifics—USDA last week announced its Great American Cotton Plan for 2026-2031. Secretary Brooke Rollins and industry leaders described the initiative as a comprehensive strategy to address the persistent challenges facing U.S. cotton production, d...
From WPI Consulting
Forecasting developments in production agriculture
On behalf of a private U.S. agricultural technology provider, WPI’s team generated an econometric model to forecast the movement of concentrated corn production north and west from the traditional U.S. Corn Belt. WPI’s model has subsequently provided quantitative support to a multi-million-dollar investment into short-season corn variety development. WPI’s methodology included a series of interviews with regional grain elevators and seed consultants. Emphasizing outreach and communication with stakeholders who possess intimate sectoral knowledge – on-the-ground insights – is a regular component of WPI’s methodologies, made possible by WPI’s ever-growing network of industry contacts.